The Darker Side of Zootopia
by Kalib Odiv
Summary: Judy and Nick thought that Zootopia would calm after the Nighthowler case was solved but as a bank robbery case goes wrong they can't be too sure.
1. Chapter 1

Judy Hopps jumped awake and looked out the window of her apartment; sighing when she noticed that the moon had only barely reach the peak of midnight. She swung her legs over the side of her bed and trudged into her kitchen to get herself a glass of water. She walked back into her room with the glass and noticed that the message light flashed every so often, and when she checked it she noticed it was from Nick.

 _Nick_ : "I don't if you're awake Carrots, but if you are… could we talk?"

Judy felt her heart skip a beat for an odd reason but she responded quickly.

 _Judy_ : "Yeah, I'm up. Is everything alright Nick?"

 _Nick_ : "Yeah, I was just wondering if you were alright, the case today was pretty rough and I was just checking on you…. that's all."

 _Judy_ : "I'm alright, just a little sore… and Nick…"

 _Nick_ : "Yeah?"

 _Judy_ : "Thank you, I appreciate you taking the time to make sure I was alright…"

 _Nick_ : "I can't have my partner slipping into a coma, now can I?"

Judy felt herself smile at Nick's concern for her, even if it was thinly veiled as sarcasm.

 _Judy_ : "Not to mention you would have to be the one to tell my mom and dad….and my 758 siblings."

 _Nick_ : "Yeah, I'd rather not have to do that. See you tomorrow Carrots, sweet dreams."

 _Judy_ : "Sleep tight Nick."

Judy set her phone back down and plugged it in to charge before curling up in her blanket; falling back to sleep quickly.

The next morning Judy walked in the ZPD and walked up to where Nick Wilde had his head restd on his desk.

"I guess you didn't get much sleep last night." Judy stated.

"Eh, I got distracted with the news." He replied, not lifting his head. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure, what's up?" Judy asked him.

Nick turned his head so that he was looking at her before he spoke. "Has anyone strange approached you recently?"

"No, why?" Judy asked him.

"I saw on that they were talking about a murderer that was targeting small prey, like rabbits and sheep…" Nick replied.

"Oh, thanks for asking but I haven't had anyone approach me that seemed like a threat to my life." Judy as she leaned against Nick's desk.

He smiled and chuckled before speaking again. "Though you'd most likely be able to defend yourself pretty well."

"Yeah, I wonder what the issue will be today?" Judy wondered aloud.

As if waiting for those exact words Chief Bogo walked up to them.

"Hopps, Wilde, there has been a bank robbery at the First Bank of the Rainforest District and I need you to catch them." He told them.

"On it sir." Judy replied before saluting him.

Nick nodded as he got up and got his tranquilizer gun out of his desk. "I'm to go whenever you are Carrot Top."

Judy nodded before getting her dart gun as well and running to the police cruiser with Nick.

"I wonder why Bogo came straight to us?" Nick asked Judy as he started up the car.

She only shrugged as she looked over her tranquilizer gun. "Maybe he wants us to get there to get a look at the situation while he get the rest of the department ready."

Nick nodded as he got onto the main road the Rainforest District and watched Judy out the corner of his eye. He watched as she ejected the tranquilizer cartriage and examined it before replacing it. As they arrived to the scene of the crime Judy gasped and Nick couldn't blame her; up the front steps of the bank blood was everywhere. She gulped as she open her door and hopped out; trying not to land in a puddle of the blood.

"This is horrible." Judy whispered. "We have to get this guy Nick."

He nodded as he readied his gun and took the lead as they walked up to the front doors of the bank. They stop on either side the door and Nick peeked into the darkened building quickly before ducking back to cover. He gestured for Judy to go around to the side of the building and she nodded before turning around and quickly snuck over to her position; ignoring the feeling of not wanting to leave him alone. Nick went around the other side of the building get to Judy's position, but as he went around the corner his vision went dark as pain shot through the side of his jaw.

Judy let out a deep breath as she waited for Nick for a few more minutes before shouldering the door open and sneaking in. She ran along the shadows until she got to the main hallway and ducked behind cover. She could hear several footsteps just beyond where she was hiding and she felt her heart pounding against her chest.

"Oh girlie, we know you're in here." One robber yelled.

"We have your partner, the fox." Another shouted.

Judy's heart almost stopped as she forced her hands to stop shaking as she cursed. She knew she should've stayed, but they would've both been captured and then possibly killed right away. She knew that they were using him as bait, but what if they didn't have him? What if they were bluffing to see if she would fall for it.

"Speak fox, or we'll kill her right in front of you." One of the robbers told Nick.

It wasn't until one robber placed his gun to the back of Nick head that he spoke.

"Judy, don't listen to them." He coughed, pain lingering on each word. "They'll just kill both of us."

Judy felt her face drain of color as the situation set in for her. They had Nick and they had her outnumbered by 10 to 1 easily. She finally noticed how slippery her palms had gotten as Nick had spoken.  
"Judy, do not do anything stupid, get out of here and wait for back up." Nick yelled before one the robbers slammed the stock of his rifle into Nick's jaw.

Judy winced as she heard the blow and she let out her breath slowly as her ears picked up the faintest sound of police sirens. She had already pinpointed each of the robbers with there being only seven in total so she just had to figure out how to take them out without getting shot or at least distract them for long enough to get Nick out danger. Judy fished around in her pocket hoping that she had brought her mirror and smiled when her finger brushed against it. She pulled it out and raised and tilted it ever so slightly just as Nick had shown her to see what exactly species the robbers were. To her surprise she saw that they were rhinos and she got a idea that she hoped would work.

"So, if I am to turn myself over, I will only do it to your guy's leader so who is it?" Judy asked them without leaving her cover.

"I'm the leader." One of the rhinos shouted.

Suddenly another rhino shouted out in protest and soon they were shouting and fighting amongst each other to Judy's relief. She peeked over her cover and noticed that they carried on their fight away from Nick, so she leapt over her cover and grabbed Nick under his shoulders. She dragged him down another hallway out the rhino's line of sight. She sat against the wall as the sirens got closer and the rhino's roared when they noticed that Nick was gone.

"I'm sorry Nick, but I have to do something pretty stupid…" Judy told the unconscious fox as she readied her gun and let out her breath.

Judy leapt over her cover again and fired at the rhino, tranquilizing a few before a stray bullet grazed her cheek and she rolled behind a thick mahogany desk for cover. The remaining rhinos advanced to her location and one smashed through the desk she was hiding behind and threw her across the room into the wall. She hit the wall hard enough to where she blacked out for a second and barely got out of the way as another bullet grazed her side. Surprisingly, between, shooting and ducking behind cover-as well as being thrown again a few walls she had gotten all but one rhino knocked out.

"Put down the gun girlie." The last rhino said from behind her.

Judy turned around to find that the rhino had Nick by the throat and had his gun pressed to Nick's head.

"Put the gun down, or there will be one less fox in this world." He growled again.

Judy put her hands up and placed the gun on the ground before kicking it to the rhino.

"Let him go."Judy replied.

"Who?" The rhino asked. "Your partner, the one we caught sneaking around the building to meet you? I don't think so."

Judy saw that just past the rhino the other police from the station had finally arrived. When the rhino noticed Judy took her opportunity and charged at him.

"Chalk this up as the second stupid idea I've had today." Judy whispered to herself as she leapt onto the rhino's face and clawed at his eyes, nose, and ears.

It succeeded in making the rhino drop Nick as the other police officer help him get out of the building but she couldn't stop until she knew everybody was safe.

Nick stumbled along with the other officers not knowing what was going on as he looked around for Judy.

"C-Carrots?" Nick called out questioningly.

"She still in there." Another officer replied.

Nick didn't understand as he watched the other officers helping innocent civilians out of the bank, scanning the crowd for Judy. It wasn't until there were a few loud gun shout that he regained his senses.

"Judy!" Nick hollered as he pulled away from the officers who were holding onto him.

He sprinted back into the bank almost slipping on a few puddles off blood as he searched for Judy. It took him a few minutes but he found her back by the main vault and he felt sick as he saw blood ebbing out slowly from a gunshot wound in her side.

"We have an officer down, someone call an ambulance!" Nick shouted as he fell to his knees beside Judy and pulled her into his arms. "Stay with me Judy, help is on its way…"

She smiled up at Nick. "Did I get him?"

Nick looked over to where the last bank robber lay, dead.

"Yeah, you got him." Nick replied.

"Good." Judy whispered as she passed out.

"Judy, no, please stay with me." Nick told as he felt tears well up in his eyes as paramedics ran in to take Judy from his tight grasp.


	2. Chapter 2

Nick sat outside the operating room for the third time in the past 18 hours. He rubbed his face and sighed; hating himself for letting this happen to Judy. He looked around and noticed Judy's parents at the end of the hallway; waving them over as he stood up.

"So you must be her partner Nick Wilde." Mr. Hopps replied as they reached him.

"Yes sir." Nick replied.

"Is she alright?" Judy's mom asked him.

"This is the third surgery Mrs. Hopps." Nick replied. "The doctors have said that they should be able to remove the bullet fragments now that they have stopped all of the major bleeding."

Nick had to look away as he spook because he couldn't bear to see the looks of grief on the faces of Judy's parents.

"I should've been there…" Nick muttered.

"Sweetie, you don't know if you would've been able to help…" Mrs. Hopps told him.

"I would've been able to keep her from having to be in there alone." Nick replied.

"Then what?" Mr. Hopps asked him. "You both would probably be in the operation room."

"Then she wouldn't have had to fight that rhino by herself." Nick said to him. "If only we hadn't split up, then we would've had each other's back and maybe she would've been alright."

"You were doing what you thought was right." Mrs. Hopps replied.

"But it wasn't the best thing to do." Nickk replied somberly.

Mrs. Hopps got on her tiptoes as much as she could and took Nick's face in her paws as she looked him straight in his eyes.

"Now listen here Nick, from all that Judy has told us about you, there is one thing she never said that you were." Mrs. Hopps told him. "She never said you were a quiter, and I know she wouldn't want you to beat yourself up over this."

"I'm her partner, I'm supposed to have her back." Nick responded.

"She knew what she was getting herself into Nick, and she took each day by stride." Mr. Hopps told him. "Let me ask you something, if you were working through this case with Judy what would she do?"

Nick's eyes widened slightly and he nodded.

"She would most likely note that rhino's have their brute strength that is about it so there would have to be someone behind the scenes; telling them exactly what to do." Nick muttered to himself.

He hugged Mrs. Hopps gently and shook Mr. Hopps paw before running down the hallway.

"Nick, where are you going?" Mrs. Hopps yelled after him.

"I just thought of a lead that I could look at." Nick replied as he turned around.

"What should we tell Judy if you're not back by the time she wakes up?" Mr. Hopps asked him.

"Tell her that I'm doing exactly what she would be doing if it our positions were switched." Nick replied before he ran out of the hospital.

Nick and Clawhauser walked toward the bank and Nick looked around for any cameras.

"So what are we looking for Nick?" Clawhauser asked him.

"Cameras." Nick replied.

"How would they help us?" Clawhauser asked him again.

"If we can get the license plate from the car or if the car robbers were dropped off in had any distinguishing characteristics; then we could lessen the number of possibilities of cars it had to be." Nick told him. "With that information we could find the owner of the vechicle."

Clawhauser nodded and started to look around as well.

"Ben?" Nick asked him.

"Yeah Nick?" Clawhauser asked him.

"If anything ever happens to where I can't be there; I need you to protect Judy." Nick told him.

"Nick, what are you talking about?" Clawhauser asked him.

"Whoever did this could be the guy targeting all the smaller mammals, so he may go after Judy again." Nick replied. "I'm not going to let him get away with this; he will pay."

Clawhauser backed up slightly before he spoke. "Nick don't do anything you would regret."

"Ben, I can't look at Judy now without hating myself…" Nick told him.

"Nick, she wouldn't want you do what you're thinking." Clawhauser replied.

"She is in the damn hospital because of me Ben." Nick growled.

"But she cares about you Nick; she wouldn't want you to get hurt." Clawhauser told him.

Nick sighed and leaned against the wall behind him.

"Look, Nick, Judy really does care about you." Clawhauser told him. "She told me not to tell you this but she does seriously care about you."

Nick sighed and placed a paw over his left shirt pocket. Clawhauser watched as Nick pulled a picture out of his pocket. Clawhauser looked and saw that it was the picture of Judy on Nick's graduation day from the Academy.

"She was the first person to show me that I could something other than a sly, untrusting fox." Nick muttered.

"You care about her a lot more than you let on." Clawhauser replied.

"We would never work out." Nick retorted.

"You never know that Nick." Clawhauser fought back.

"I'm a fox and she's a rabbit." Nick replied.

"You are both the first of your species to have become cops, some of the best cops at that." Clawhauser replied.

"Your point being?" Nick asked him.

"You both knocked down some barriers with what you two have done so far." Clawhauser replied. "You shouldn't let it stop you now."

"I just can't." Nick muttered, putting the picture back into the pocket.

"Why?" Clawhauser asked him.

"I don't want to hurt her!" Nick growled.

Clawhauser just looked at Nick as he noticed movement out of the corner of his eye.

"Nick, some people just went into the side of the bank." Clawhauser told him.

"Stay here." Nick replied before sprint towards the bank.

"NICK!" Clawhauser yelled.

Nick snuck into the side of bank and slowly followed the figures throughout the halls. When they stopped Nick crouched down low in the shadows praying that they didn't see him.

"So what is the plan?" One of the three figures started.

"Well the rhinos did a good job taking the attention off of us so that we could get in." The second said.

"Jaquece, Walker, shut it." The biggest figure growled.

"Yes boss." Jaquece replied. "So what's the plan?"

"Well, our original plan was to just crack open the vault and retrieve our money but with all this cops around that may be a little difficult." The boss told them.

"Why don't we just use the cop who has been eased dropping as a hostage so that we can get away?" Walker asked the boss.

Nick cursed and rolled out of the way as Walker trudged towards him. As he got into the light he finally noticed that the three burglars consisted of a tiger; who was the boss, and two henchmen lions. He jumped out of the way as the other lion leapt at him. He barely dodged out of the way but then the tiger grabbed him by the throat and picked him up.

He gestured to the two lions. "You two get the door open."

They nodded as they rolled out two propane tanks and started to burn away at the locking mechanism on the vault. Nick struggled and tried to get out of the tiger's grasp but the tiger cracked him across the jaw with a fist. Nick felt his vision blur and he slumped for a second before pushing his feet into the ground and slamming the top of his head into the tiger's jaw. The tiger just cracked him across the jaw two more times and Nick tasted a little blood in his mouth. Nick watched in disgust as the two lions got the vault door open slowly.

"So what do you idiots plan to do once you have the money packed away; by that time the police would have already surrounded the place." Nick growled. "You won't get out of here alive."

"Oh, is that so?" The tiger asked him.

One of the lions slammed the stock of their rifle into Nick's stomach and the tiger let him go so he dropped to the ground coughing up blood.

The tiger walked to where he was in front of Nick and used a foot to slam Nick's head into the ground. Nick scratched at the ground as he scratched at the ground, trying to get a hand on something to use as a weapon. Where did he put his gun? One of the lions stomp on one of his hands and Nick felt several bones snap and he cried out in pain.

"Walker, we need him alive and conscious." The tiger roared as Jaquece carried out the last bag of money.

The tiger pulled Nick to his feet and shoved him forward; when Nick spun around and tried to swing at the tiger he was greeted by a pistol whip to the jaw which sent him sprawling back to the floor. One of the lions pulled him back to his feet and the tiger got in his face.

"Try that again and you will die." The tiger growled. "Now be a good hostage and lead the way."

Judy flashed through Nick's mind and he only turned around and stumbled forward.

Judy woke up slightly in a hospital bed and saw her parents sitting beside her.

"What happened? Where's Nick?" Judy asked them as she tried to sit up.

"Judy, please lay still." Her mom told her.

"Where's Nick?" Judy asked them again.

"He went to follow a lead about the bank robbery." Her father replied.

"On his own?" Judy asked.

As her mom nodded Judy grabbed the t.v. remote and turned on the news station; what she saw made her drop the remote. Nick was being shoved out the front door of the bank in the Rainforest District and his face was a bit swollen as a tiger and two lions followed behind him. She saw that the tiger had a gun pressed against Nick's back and the cops didn't even move as the thieves walked down an alleyway; taking Nick with them. Judy only felt the tears pouring down her face as her mother hugged her. They had gotten away; with Nick; with her partner. How could this have happened?


	3. Chapter 3

Nick had been tossed into the back of a tan sedan and he heard the trunk lock before he heard the car fire suddenly and then start. As it jumped forward he was thrown hard against the back wall off the trunk and he heard the lions laugh loudly as he groaned.

"Fucking shit." Nick groaned.

He lost track of time as the car moved along and he kept getting thrown around every time the care would hit a bump with even the smallest pothole sending him flying into the top of the metal trunk. Once the car had finally stopped as the trunk was opened Nick hissed in pain as the sunlight burned his eyes. Each of the lions grabbed him under an arm and yanked him out of the trunk; causing him to cry out in pain again as he realized that several of his ribs had been broken between the beating at the bank and the car ride. The tiger punched him straight in the ribs; causing him to cough up a little blood in the process and he grinned slightly.

"You bastards wouldn't try to fight me on even grounds." Nick growled.

The tiger growled and punched him a few more times until he was on his hands and knees on the ground coughing up a lot of blood. The lions pulled him back to his feet and Nick looked up to see if he could figure out where they were. His eyes widen extremely as he saw that they were at the Savage Lands. The Savage Lands had been created by Mayor Lionheart's successor as an area where the worst of Zootopia criminals were sent to. Though others could go into the Savage Lands, those of whom never really survive; the ones that have been sent into the Savage Lands by the order of the Mayor were unable to leave due to some sort of process done upon the convicted.

"You three are either insane or you want me to be kept quiet." Nick muttered.

"Our boss would like to meet you." The tiger replied.

Nick gulped and felt his pulse race as his imagination ran wild with the possibilities of what their boss could be. The lions drug him forward and he struggled as hard as he could until he miraculously got out of their grasp and as they grabbed after him again they tore off his top shirt and it fell to the ground as they tackled him. Nick yelled out as the two lion's combined weight smashed down onto his back and he blacked out.

Judy watched the news long after the scene of Nick being abducted and it constantly played through her head; long after she had stopped crying and her parents had left. She jumped when there was a knock on her door and yelped in pain as the sudden movement agitated her gunshot wound. She looked over and saw Clawhauser standing in her doorway with his head hung down.

"Hey Ben, whats wrong?" Judy asked him.

"I should've done more to stop him…" Clawhauser muttered.

"What?" Judy asked him again.

"I should've done more to stop Nick from running into the bank…" Clawhauser replied.

"Ben, I think we both know nothing could've stopped him." Judy replied.

"You would've been able to." Clawhauser told her.

"We don't know that…" Judy retorted.

"He blames himself." Clawhauser replied.

"For what?" Judy asked him, annoyed with the thought of her being the reason Nick is in danger.

"He blames himself for you ending up in the hospital." Clawhauser replied.

"I made the decision to put myself in danger so that he would be out danger, it's my own fault that I got shot." Judy told him.

Judy got angry at Nick for a second for putting him in the position to get kidnapped, but then she hated herself for knowing that she would've done the same thing if she was in his situation. She rested a paw over the bullet wound and groaned.

"Are you in pain?" Clawhauser asked her.

"No, I'm just worried sick." Judy replied.

"Nick is a tough guy." Clawhauser reassured her.

"But he has a mouth on him that could get him killed if he isn't careful." Judy replied as she looked at the ceiling. "I hate being stuck in this bed; I should be out there looking for him."

"You need to rest Judy." Clawhauser told her sternly.

"I know…..I just hate it." Judy sighed and looked at Clawhauser. "Ben, please tell me that Chief Bogo has people looking for him."

"Of course they do Judy, Chief sent a group to try to track them down a few minutes after they left." Clawhauser replied. "The team hasn't reported anything in though."

Judy ran her paws over her face as she groaned. She wished her abdomen would hurry up and heal or that the hospital would release her already so that she didn't feel absolutely worthless laying in this hospital bed. She just couldn't believe how quickly part of her world had fallen apart with it only having been six months since she and Nick had stopped Assistant Mayor Bellwether's plot to turn every predator in Zootopia into a bunch of savages. She just reached for anther handful of tissue as she felt more tears threatening to come and her hand brushed something cool to the touch. She looked at her bedside table and saw a wooden box with her initials engraved in the top of it with a piece of paper taped to the bottom of it. She picked the box up and took the note off of the bottom and read it.

 _Dear Carrots,_

 _I don't know if I'll be when you wake up; I'll probably get loaded down with paperwork, or talking to your parents while the rest of the department visited you. I don't know where to start this note really since I'm not too used to write sentimental crap…. I guess first off I should apologize about screwing up so badly at the bank and getting myself caught, and… I want to thank you for what you did for me…. Not just at the bank, but this whole time. When we first started working together; even though it wasn't under the best of circumstances, but you never gave up on me… I really appreciate everything you've done for me… I would probably have been arrested by now if you hadn't helped me out… I just want to say that I care about you Judy and I just don't want to hurt you… I love you…_

 _Sincerely,_

 _The Sly Fox._

She saw Clawhauser offering her a few tissues and she realized that her tears had started to fall on the paper; blurring the words slightly. She took the tissues from Clawhauser and blotted the tears out of her eyes and reread the letter again two more times. She put the letter down and picked the box back up and studied it. She finally saw that there were carrots and flowers gently engraved into the top and sides of the box. Judy clutched the box tightly to her chest and bit her lip.

Nick woke up the next day to find himself chained to a post; shirtless. He looked around to see if he could notice anything useful but to no avail. He groaned as every time moved it agitated his ribs and he looked in front of himself as a lion walked into his field of vision. Nick growled as the lion approached but that it earned him was a hard jab in his ribs.

"You son of a bitch." Nick groaned.

"Big words from someone who can't fight back." The lion replied.

"Which are you huh?" Nick asked him. "All you lions look like egotistical pricks so it's hard to tell yall apart."

The lion punched him again and wiped Nick's blood off of his fist.

"You're so lucky the boss finds you interesting." The lion replied as he looped a snare pole around Nick's neck.

Nick watched another lion come from behind him and undo the chains but before Nick could do anything the lion in front of him tightened the snare pole; almost cutting off Nick airway. The lion pushed Nick out in front of him and with the length of the snare pole Nick wasn't able to inflict any sort of damage on his kidnappers as they pushed him forward. They shoved Nick through several dark hallways to a set of massive oak doors. The lions positioned beside the doors slowly pushed them open to reveal a bigger yet empty room. The tiger had his back to Nick and chuckled as the lions tossed him into the room.

"Glad to see that you're still alive Nicholas." The tiger told him.

"How do you know my name?" Nick asked him.

"Oh, I know all about you and your little partner's escapades that have the crime world in a major way." The tiger replied.

"So you're the real boss behind all of this?" Nick asked him angrily.

"No, and consider yourself lucky that my boss has taken a liking to your will to fight." The tiger replied as he pressed a button.

Nick watched as a hatch opened on the side of the and the sheer force of the vacuum rip him out of the room and dropped into the canopy below without much mercy as he broke through several branches before landing hard on the solid packed dirt below him. He groan in pain but forced himself to his feet as multiple howls started up around him. He tried to get an idea from where the noise was coming from but the sheer pressure change when he was thrown out of what he could only guess had been a plane had all but taken away his hearing. In the end he opted for the latter option that popped into his head as he quickly turn and ran through the darkness as branch scratched at his exposed skin and tore at his pants. As he ran he realized that the main thing that would keep him going was the hope to get back to the main part of Zootopia. Back to Judy. His partner, and the girl he loved more than anything in the world.


	4. Chapter 4

Judy walked around the track at the local fitness center in Zootopia's Savannah Central. It been a few days before the hospital had allowed Judy to leave, but to her despair no one had found any sign of Nick anywhere. Even now Chief Bogo wouldn't allow her to join the search due to her "work-related injury" and even worse Clawhauser was following her almost everywhere she went. She did enjoy the leopard's company since the building was mainly deserted between the teams that would switch off every so often in the continued search for Nick and the rest of the station would come and go with different cases they had to work. Judy was to the point that she slept at the police station; very much against Chief Bogo's commands. She sighed as she trudged along with Clawhauser sweating beside her.

"You know you don't have to follow me everywhere Ben." Judy told him kindly.

"I…promised him….that I….would…keep you… safe." Clawhauser panted.

Jud only looked down as she thought of Nick again, hoping that wherever he was that he wasn't in too much danger. She shook her head and stomped her foot. No! She had to stay positive; Nick was going to be alright, and they were going to find him. Even though she thought this she had a bad feeling deep down that kept grinding away at her resolve.

"I can't give up." Judy muttered. "Nick wouldn't give up on me if he was in my position, so I can't either."

She looked up to the glass ceiling as Clawhauser watched her.

"Nick, wherever you are; we will find you, and we will bring you home." Judy whispered.

Nick ran as fast as he could but he could hear them gaining on him as the seconds ticked away. Soon they would be right on top of him and then what? He had nothing to protect himself with and he didn't have any training with dealing with the "things" chasing him. He could only really call them only thing due to the fact with how far they have descended into savagery. He heard branches snapping behind him and Nick forced himself to go faster. Suddenly, he felt his foot get caught under a segment of tree root and he was sent tumbling down a hill. When he came to a stop he saw the beast tearing down the hill after him and Nick pushed himself back to his feet; taking off again. He had to stay alive; had to get back to Judy.

"Why did I have to try to stop them?" Nick asked himself.

He felt a paw rake across his back; pushing him off balance slightly, but he kept going with his arm wind milling to keep himself on his feet. It wasn't until one of the beast jumped onto his back; shoving his muzzle deep into the muddy ground. Nick rolled to his side and kicked the beast in the knee and it roared before stomping on his side. Nick grunted but smiled as the beast jumped away from him and he rolled out of the way of the other beast as they tried to either bite or stomp on him. This was the first time Nick was able to actually see what they looked like.

They had previously been timber wolves but now they barely resemble such a thing. Their eyes were mad with bloodlust and hunger. Their teeth were elongated to a terrifying extent as were their claws. They only wore shreds of clothing that were probably only still on due to the fact that they in really unreachable places for the wolves to get at. Saliva hung from their mouths in long strands and as Nick looked them over as he backed away he noticed that they all were sporting several severe wounds that would usually cripple them.

Nick found a good sized rock and slowly picked it up before getting to his feet.

"Come here you little bastards." Nick whispered.

The first wolf charged at him and as he got close Nick jumped to the side while bring the rock down as hard as he could on the wolf's neck. As he heard a sickening crack that stunned the other two wolves he took off running again. He quickly came to a streamed chuckled as he ran through it; letting the water wash away the mud on his feet. This time when he heard the wolves howling he wasn't as afraid, because he knew one thing; they could be killed. Arm with this oddly relieving knowledge Nick ran on.

Judy sat at her desk at the ZPD and looked through the case files that had piled up on her desk; to be honest she was just glad to have something to do. Clawhauser had gone back to his spot at the front desk, but he came to her desk every so often to check on her. She went onto her computer and went onto the traffic camera main server with the access she and Nick had received after successfully completely a case for the former Mayor Lionheart; though Nick hadn't been told about the fact. She went through the recording from the time they had gone to the bank together on the day when Judy had gotten shot, and she decided to go back to before they had gotten there.

After a while she got up and walked over to the break room to find Chief Bogo sitting alone with a cup of coffee in his paw. Judy grabbed a cup and filled it with coffee; deciding to see why Nick liked it just plain as she sat in front of her chief.

"Hello Officer Hopps." Bogo stated somberly.

"Afternoon Chief, you seem a bit down." Judy replied.

"I just can't wrap my mind around why Nick would run into the back after a tiger and two lions, and without even calling for backup." Bogo told her. "I know he wouldn't usually do that; he's too smart for it."

"He blames himself for me getting hurt and Clawhauser told me that Nick had gone back to where the bank was to look for any possible cameras." Judy stated, still hating herself for letting any of it happen.

"He doesn't know about y'all's access?" Bogo asked her.

"No, I've been meaning to tell him but we've always gotten busy." Judy replied. "If only I had told him about then he wouldn't have had a reason to go back down there…"

"Hopps, it's no use beating yourself up over the past." Bogo told her. "You should focus on the here and now and how you are going to get him back here."

She looked at her police chief and smiled; she couldn't believe he was the same guy who had a vendetta against her when she first got into the ranks of the ZPD.

"Why are you hanging out here by yourself Chief?" Judy asked him.

"I just needed new surrounding to clear my head, and I figured that you would come back here eventually." Bogo replied matter-of-factly.

"Why would you say that?" Judy asked him.

"Because even you need something to keep you going after going for about three days straight looking at something you shouldn't have gotten your paws on." Bogo replied with a slight grin.

Judy looked at him in shock and spoke quickly. "Please don't punish Clawhauser sir, I was the one that pressured him slightly to get me the files so it myself who should be reprimanded for insubordination."

"Insubordination?" Bogo asked her.

"You told me that I was not to help with the search." Judy told him.

"I said you are not to go search for him, I never said that you couldn't help case the area and minimize the search area for the crews to search through." Bogo told her as he stood up.

He walked towards the door and when he was about to leave he looked back at Judy.

"Judy, I've seen how you two look at each other when the other isn't looking and trust me we are working on finding Nick."

With that he left her in the break room, slightly dumbfounded by his revelation.


	5. Chapter 5

Nick kept running through the river, hoping and praying that the wolves would lose his scent but so far nothing has worked. He skidded to a stop as he came a wall of pure rock wall the stretched to either side of him as far as his eye could see. The waterfall supplying the river crashed down a few feet in front of Nick and he ran around the side of it to see that it acrually hung away from the rock wall slightly. He grinned as he ducked between the rock face and the water to test how well he could grip the stone. Once he was satisfied that he would be able to climb it he slowly started his ascension towards the top of the cliff. When he heard the wolves' howling getting closer he allowed himself to laugh slightly. As long as he could stay up high, the wolves weren't going to be his problem.

Now that he was out of dangering being mauled, he realized that he had been going on adrenaline for the whole time and now he felt the searing pain of the claw marks on his back as well as what he could only guess was mild hypothermia.

"I got find an area where its safe for me to start a fire and set up camp..." Nick told himself.

He started to feel the rock digging into his paws slight as he neared the top of the cliff. As he finally felt his hand brush soft grass he scrambled the few last feet and rolled onto his back; panting hard. After a few minutes to breath with the wolves' howling far below he got to his feet and stretched. He stuffed his paws into his pockets and felt his hand brush against cool metal and he smiled. Nick had long forgotten about the small three inch pocketknife that he kept handy, he had Judy sew a special little pocket for it in all of his uniforms. He had asked her if she could do it when they had got a case in the rainforest district that had required them to stay in the denser part of the uninhabited jungle, and now he was really glad that she had done it for him.

He smiled as he went back into the forest until he was barely able to hear the timber wolves' howls. When he stumbled upon a clearing Nick started to cut down numerous branches. After he cut down at least 60 branches he started weaving them together to form a small tent with an opening at the top for the smoke to escape so that he didn't suffocate himself. Nick got some of the drier but sturdier pieces of wood and piled them slightly before he found a rock and stuck his blade against; being careful not to break the blade. He got the fire started and quickly surrounded it by rocks to make sure it didn't spread and burn him alive.

Nick took off his shirt and pants to let them dry even just a little bit. He had already collect a bunch of comfy looking giant leaves that only grew in the deep part of the Rainforest District. As he laid down he took a little measure of comfort in knowing a little about where he may be. Though it didn't help him figure where he had to go or as to why this "boss" person was so interested in him. Nick thought about this for a while until his mind wandered back to Judy. He just wondered how she was doing and exactly what she was doing.

Judy laid on a cot in the break room of the police station; she looked up at the ceiling and though deeply about Nick. She mainly hoped that he was okay and that whoever had him was perpared to be locked up for good. She picked up the box that Nick had made for her and just studied it. She slowly traced the designwith one of her fingers and bit her lip gently to try not to cry. She thought about what could be happening to Nick and no matter how much she tried not to her mind always wondered back to what could possibly be happening to Nick. She fell asleep clutching the box to her chest; breathing the rich wooden scent.

\- Nick got up in the morning and stretched before get his clothes back on and put out the cinders of his fire and as he exited his tent he collapsed to cover his tracks. He pocketed his knife and sniffed the air; barely getting out of the way as one of the wolves jumped out into the clearing. Nick picked up fire hardened stick and stabbed out at the wolf. It stepped out of the way of Nick's jab and with a swipe of its paw Nick was sent flying into the forest. He hit the ground and rolled a few time until his back smacked into a tree and his lost his breath for a second. He clambored to his feet and watched the two remaining wolves circled him slowly.

"Come on now; you ugly things." Nick muttered, trying to conceal his pain and fear. "I'm right here, and I'm ready for you."

The wolves both charged at him but as they leapt at him it seemed as if they hit an invisible wall. Nick watched them and his eyes widened as a door appeared in front of him.

"Come on Nicholas, its either me or the wolves." A voice told him.

"Great, I'm planning to listen to a possible voice in my head." Nick whispered to himself. "Definitely going crazy..."

Nick grabbed the doorknob and opened the door and jumped through.

Nick leapt awake in a hospital and grabbed his chest as his heart pounded impossibly hard against his chest. He breathed heavily as he looked around the room that he currently occupied.

"Nick!" Judy exclaimed as she ran into the room.

"Judy, where am I?" Nick asked her.

Judy didn't answer as she leapt through the air and landed on Nick; hugging him tightly. Nick winced as Judy did so but he hugged her back gently as he took in her scent.

"Where had you been Nick?" Judy asked him.

"Somewhere in the Rainforest District, I don't know where exactly." Nick replied. "How long was I gone?"

"About three and a half weeks..." Judy replied.

Nick rubbed his face and felt that something was off. He looked at his left paw and noticed that half of his left pinkie finger was missing.

"Well it seems that whoever took me kept a little souvenir." Nick muttered as he clenched and unclenched his paw.

"I'm a little jealous of you Nick." Judy told him.

"How so?" Nick asked her. "Do you want some criminals to snatch you and have me tearing up the ends of world searching for you."

"No, its just the amount of flowers you got from the other officers at the station makes me a little jealous." Judy told him.

"Flowers, though appreciated; are highly unneeded." Nick chuckled. "What I could go for is maybe a slice of your mom's blueberry pie, the messier the better."

Judy giggled slightly. "What if the blueberries end up dying your fur blue?"

Nick huffed playfully. "What? A blue fox can't exist?"

Judy smiled. "Funny that you mentioned blueberry pie so specifically. I had told my mom about how much you liked her blueberries and she made you a pie."

As Judy held up the pie Nick smiled.

"Can she read minds or something?" Nick asked her as Judy got two slices onto seperate plates.

Nick smiled as he took the plate from Judy and started to eat the slice of pie. As Judy ate her piece and was about to eat the piece had on he fork Nick tapped her shoulder. When she looked away from her fork he quickly ate the piece on her fork and chuckled.

"Hey, don't be a jerk." Judy yelled as Nick chuckled again.

"It's called a hustle sweetheart." Nick cooed.

"No you're just being mean." Judy retorted as Nick grinned.

"So what has occuring since my involuntary hiatus?" Nick asked her.

"Um, well the main huge thing is that a rabbit came to the ZPD." Judy replied.

"Oh, sounds interesting." Nick replied. "Whats the hotshot's name?"

"I think it might've been Jack Savage." Judy replied as she put her plate down.

"Might've been?" Nick asked her.

"Well I wasn't really paying attention." Judy replied as Nick put his plate down.

Judy watched him curiously as he seemed to gain a more serious look about himself for a moment as he cleared his throat.

"Judy, there has been something that I have been wanting to ask you." Nick told her as he took her paws in his own and looked at her.

Judy felt her cheeks turn a bright red as her pulse raced wildly.

"Judy Hopps, I was wondering if you would like to date me?" Nick asked her.

Judy hugged Nick tightly and kissed his cheek gently.

"Yes, Nick Wilde I would be honored to be your girlfriend." Judy told him as he wrapped his arms gently around her waist. "Mind if I stay here tonight?"

"Of course, I could use a little bunny heater during the night." Nick replied as he yawned.

Judy snuggled close to Nick and nuzzled the bottom of his chin with her nose. Nick looked down at he and noticed that she was still in her police uniform.

"That vest has got to be uncomfortable to lay in." Nick told her.

"We just started dating and you're already trying to undress me?" Judy asked him.

"I just know how uncomfortable the bullet proof vest are." Nick replied. "Just sit up."

Judy did so and Nick slowly unbutton the flap covering the vest's zipper and then unzipped it. He then slid the vest off of her shoulders and placed it in the seat next to his bed as Judy laid back down. She curled up against his chest slightly and he held her gently as she slowly fell asleep. Judy had her head buried in Nick's chest with her back towards Nick's face so he just rested his chin on her cack as he fell asleep; both of them smiling slightly.


	6. Chapter 6

Nick sprinted through the forest; the branches smacking his face and scratching at his arms and bare chest. The area around him immediately was pitch black;tthis being a darkness that even he couldn't see through. He heard the timeber wolves howling right behind him and he could feel their hot breath on the back of his neck as he continue to run as fast as he possibly could until he reached the waterfall again. He quickly started to climb up; ignoring the screaming of his muscles. He thought he was safe until his handholds crumbled under his fingers and he plummeted back down towards the wolves waiting below him.

Nick jumped awake and quickly wrapped his arm around Judy so that she didn't get thrown off the bed.

"Nick are you alright?" Judy asked him.

"J-just a nightmare." Nick replied as he noticed how badly he was sweating.

Judy hugged him tightly and kissed his cheek gently.

"You're safe Nick." Judy told him.

Nick just kissed the top of Judy's head; causing her to blush slightly.

"I was gone for three and a half weeks and I only remember about two days of it." Nick whispered.

"It'll be alright Nick, I promise." Judy told him.

"I really just need to get back to work." Nick replied.

Judy just held onto Nick as she felt his heartbeat against her cheek.

"I missed you Nick." Judy replied.

"I missed you too Judy." Nick told her. "So what do we know about this Savage rabbit?"

"I don't know much about him myself, but apparently Chief knows him pretty well." Judy told him. "I've heard that he has just been in the South Seas for the past 5 years."

"The South Seas?" Nick asked her.

"Yeah, why?" Judy asked him.

"I need to show you something." Nick replied as he held onto Judy and seung his legs over the side of the bed.

"What are you doing Nick; you need to rest." Judy told him.

"I feel alright." Nick replied. "Good enough to leave."

"Nick..." Judy pleaded slightly.

"I can't just lay in this bed Judy, I can't rest knowing that I can't remember three whole weeks." Nick told her.

Judy nodded before speaking. "I'm not going to take my eyes off of you then."

Nick chuckled as he stood up and put Judy down on her feet; taking one of her paws in his own as he did so. Together they walked out of the hospital to where the police cruiser was waiting.

"We'll want to go to the station and get my car." Nick told her.

"I'm guessing it would be a good idea to change as well?" Judy asked him.

"That would be best." Nick replied.

After they went to the police station to get Nick 1984 Chevy Mustang and for Judy to change they started on their way to where Nick lived.

"You've never told me where you lived." Judy told Nick. "Now that I think about it, you never put a place for you current residence on your application."

"At the time that I submitted my application I didn't have an address." Nick replied.

"Nick! Why didn't you tell me?!" Judy asked him.

"I didn't need to make you worry." Nick told her. "It just didn't bother that much to bring it up anyways."

"Nick, you've been my partner for the past eight months; we are supposed to look out for each other." Judy told him.

Nick smiled before ruffling the fur on the top of her head. Judy knocked his hands away and glared at him.

"Nick, we aren't supposed to keep secret from each other." Judy told him.

"You already have a shitload of stuff to worry about Judy, my problems don't need to distract you." Nick replied as he parked beside his rundown apartment building.

Judy just looked at it and Nick saw the worry plain in her eyes.

"I'm good here Judy." Nick told her.

"Nick, i could help you pay for a place that doesn't look like it'll collapse if you breath on it." Judy told him.

"Judy, I couldn't take your money in good conscious." Nick told her as he turned off his car.

"Then why don't you come live with me?" Judy asked him.

"I don't want to bother you like that sweetheart." Nick replied.

"Trust me Nick, it wouldn't be a bother at all." Judy replied.

Nick smiled and squeezed one of her paws gently.

"Only if you really want me to Carrot Top." Nick told her.

"Of course I do." Judy told him.

Nick got out of the car and opened the passenger side door for Judy.

"Thanks kind sir." Judy giggled.

"Not a problem." Nick replied as he locked the car and took Judy's out stretched paw.

Together they walked into the apartment building and up the stairs to the seventh floor. When they got to his apartment door Nick quickly unlocked it and Judy walked in. She was instantly horrified with the conditions that Nick was living in. The wallpaper was peeling from the walls to revealed mold behind it, when she turned the water on it had a slight brownish tinge to it, and most of the furniture looked like it had been picked up off the street; which it had been.

"Nick I can't believe that you have to live like this." Judy told him.

"The banks aren't too keen to lend money out to foxes ya know." Nick replied nonchalantly as he scratched at the peeling wallpaper.

Judy hugged him tightly and buried her face into his chest.

"I love you Nick." Judy told him.

"I love you too Carrots." He replied.

Nick looked down at Judy and smiled.

"So what were you planning to show me?" Judy asked him.

"Oh yeah, almost forgot." Nick replied as he walked over to his room.

Judy followed him and saw that he was rummaging through a small chest. He straightened up and had his hands cupped.

"Turn around and close your eyes." Nick told her.

Judy did so and felt Nick loop something cool around her neck.

"Now open your eyes." Nick told her.

Judy did so and saw that Nick had put a golden necklace with a carrot and pawpsicle on it.

"Nick, this is beautiful." Judy told him as she hugged him again.

"So should we go to your place?" Nick asked her as he hugged her back.

"Sure, do you remember where it is?" Judy asked him.

"Of course I do." Nick replied as they headed towards the door and back to Nick's car.


End file.
